McCoshen split the 2018-19 season between the AHL and NHL. McCoshen had one goal and one assist in 19 games with Florida and nine assists in 38 games with Springfield. McCoshen will likely open the 2020 season in the AHL yet again.

McCoshen split the 2018-19 season between the AHL and NHL. McCoshen had one goal and one assist in 19 games with Florida and nine assists in 38 games with Springfield. McCoshen will likely open the 2020 season in the AHL yet again.

Mueller, a former first-round pick (No.18 overall in 2013) served as a No.6/7 defenseman with the Devils last season. In 53 games, Mueller had 11 points (1G / 10A) to give him 21 points (3G / 18A) in 135 career NHL games. With P.K. Subban getting added to the Devils’ top-pairing, Mueller will be fighting with Connor Carrick for the No.6 defenseman spot in 2020.

Aston-Reese spent most of the 2018-19 season with the Penguins, where he had eight goals and nine assists (17 points) in 43 games. The 24-year-old posted ridiculous numbers at Northeastern University and solid AHL numbers but will be limited by his bottom-6 role with the Penguins.

The Jets acquired Pionk from the Rangers as a part of the Jacob Trouba trade and signed the RFA defenseman to a two-year contract. Pionk had six goals and 20 assists (26 points) in 73 games last season and will likely open the 2020 season on the Jets second or third pairing.

Sundqvist set career-highs in goals (14), assists (17) and points (31) in 74 games last season. Sundqvist was third among Blues forwards in SH/TOI (1:39), hits (101) and tied for sixth in blocked shots (31). The 25-year-old centre went on to add nine points (4G / 5A) in 25 playoff games to help St. Louis to the Stanley Cup.

Husso appeared in 27 games with San Antonio (AHL) last season, going 6-18-0 with a 3.67 GAA and .871 SV%. With Jordan Binnington and Jake Allen clearly ahead of him on the depth chart, Husso will remain in the AHL to start the 2020 campaign.

McGinn has settled in as a bottom-6 winger in Carolina, picking up 26 points (10G / 16A) in 82 games in 2018-19. With proven top-9 players like Ryan Dzingel and Erik Haula coming in this summer, McGinn will continue to be limited to a fourth-line role in 2020.

The Rangers acquired the RFA defenseman from the Jets for Neal Pionk and a 2019 first-round pick on June 18th and signed him through the 2025-26 season. Trouba is coming off of the best year of his career, posting 50 points (8G / 42A) in 82 games with Winnipeg. Trouba immediately becomes the Rangers best defenseman and should see more minutes than he ever saw with the Jets.

Byram was picked No.4 overall this summer after scoring 26 goals with 45 assists (71 points) in 67 games with the Vancouver Giants. Byram was considered the most NHL-ready defenseman in the draft but could be one-year away from cracking the Avalanche lineup in 2020.

Montembeault was forced into NHL action last year, going 4-3-2 wth a 3.04 GAA and .894 SV% in 11 games. Montembeault currently projects to serve as Sergei Bobrovsky’s backup following Roebrto Luongo’s retirement and the James Reimer trade but things could change before the start of the 2020 campaign.

Hudon spent the entire 2019 season with the Canadiens but appeared in just 32 games and picked up just five points (3G / 2A). It was a disappointing year for Hudon, who had 30 points in 2018. With Ryan Poehling and Nick Suzuki pushing for the NHL, Hudon will likely be an extra forward to start 2020.

Di Giuseppe was originally picked in the second-round by the Hurricanes back in 2012 but was waived last season and had a brief stint with the Nashville Predators. He has posted decent numbers at lower-levels but has just 41 points (14G / 27A) in 150 career NHL games. The 25-year-old will either start the season in the AHL or as a fourth-liner.

Masin was a second-round pick (No.35 overall) in 2014 and had 12 points (2G / 10A) in 69 games in his third full AHL season. The 23-year-old has good size (6-foot-2, 196 lbs.) for the NHL but projects to be no more than a third-pairing defenseman and won’t be with the Lightning to start the 2020 season.

Schemitsch was a third-round pick in 2015 and is coming off of 24 points (9G / 15A) in his second full AHL season. Schemitsch has good size (6-foot-4, 206 lbs.) but remains too low on the depth chart to make a push for a roster spot this fall.

Hunt split his 2019 season between the NHL and AHL, posting 44 points (23G / 21A) in 51 games with Springfield (AHL) and 10 points (3G / 7A) in 31 games with Florida (NHL). Despite moderate NHL success, Hunt will likely start 2020 in the AHL.

Hawryluk was selected No.32 overall in 2014 and finally cracked the NHL roster in 2019. The 23-year-old right winger had 12 points (7G / 5A) in 42 games with the Panthers, while averaging just 9:26 TOI/gm. With Brett Connolly and Noel Acciari singing this summer and Owen Tippett knocking on the door to make the team in training camp, Hawryluk could start the year in the AHL again.

Hicketts led all Grand Rapids defensemen with 27 points (3G / 24A) in 64 games in 2018-19. Hicketts has just three assists in 16 career NHL games but continues to get bumped down the Red Wings depth chart and may never become a full-time NHLer in Detroit.

Compher set career-highs in goals (16), assists (16) and points (32) in 66 games last season. Compher averaged 17:29 TOI/gm but carried a -4.1 relative CorsiFor% but will likely get bumped down the depth chart following the addition of Nazem Kadri this summer. Compher should settle in as Colorado’s third line centre and could thrive against the oppositions’ bottom-6.

MacInnis was originally a second-round pick of the Coyotes (No. 43 overall in 2014) but spent last season with the Blue Jackets AHL affiliate in Cleveland. The 23-year-old centre had four goals and 20 assists (24 points) in 71 games with the Monsters and will start the 2019-20 year with Cleveland.

Carrick was acquired from Toronto in early-October before the Stars traded him to New Jersey in late-February. The 25-year-old ended up picking up seven points (1G / 6A) in 20 games with the Devils, giving him a total of 11 points (2G / 9A) in just 34 games. With the addition of P.K. Subban this summer, Carrick will likely battle with Mirco Mueller for the sixth D-spot in 2020.

Some of the top NHL free agents available this summer are Mitch Marner, Mikko Rantanen, Aaron Ekblad, Nikolaj Ehlers, John Tavares, Brock Boeser, Brad Marchand and Linus Ullmark.
This offseason will bring a stacked crop of free agents to the market that will shape the landscape of the 2025-26 NHL season. Not only will the final landing spots for each of the top 2025 NHL free agents shake up the framework of the league, but will also have major implications on the upcoming fantasy hockey season. Be sure to stay in the know in regard to the latest free agency updates with our NHL player news.
On July 1st, 2025, at 12 PM EST, the 2025 NHL free agency period officially opens. While some players will have all but signed the dotted line up to this point, nothing can become official until noon on Canada Day.